Car-truck



(No Model.)

J. H. .BIOKFORD. GAR TRUCK.

Patented Jan. 5, 1892.

Zl/dnesses, Q, Invent??? UNITED STATES PATENT OF ICE.

7 JOHN H. BICKFORD, OF SALEBLMASSACHUSETTS.

CAR-TRUCK.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 466, 595, dated January 5, 11892. 7 Application filed February 10, 1891. Sez'ial No. 380,949. (Ilo model.)

ried by two four-wheel trucks placed at or near the, opposite ends of the cars. Great difficulty is experienced in securing 'trucks for such cars, when driven by an electric motor, with a wheelbase suiliciently short to pass aroundshort curves on the track and at the same timeprovide sufiicient rooinbetween the wheels in which to properly hang the electric motors. Great difliculty is also experienced in obtaining sufficient tractive power to propel these heavy cars, and one object of this invention is to construct a swivel cartruck in such a manner that without necessarily increasing the actual weights of the various parts such parts may be so arranged that/the efiective weight thrown upon the motor or driving wheels will be greatly increased, producing a corresponding increase in the tractive power of the car.

Another object of this invention is to produce a swivel car-truck which shall present a very short wheelbase and at the same time leave ample room for the motors and also leave them at all times accessible for the removal of armatures and other necessary repairs. By the term wheel-base I mean the space occupied by the wheels on the truck, and therefore the closer the wheels of adjacent axles to each other the smaller the wheelbase.

In carrying out this invention the side frame oft he truck is extended. beyond the wheelbase and carried across from one to the other side to form a'support for the armature end of a motor, the opposite end of which may be sppportradin usual manner upon one of the axles. The weight of the car is taken upon springs supported by the frame within the wheel base and placed preferably forward of the middle in order to throw a greater pro+ boxes a, maybe of any usual therefore carry the entire vweight of themotor instead of only a portion motor, v weight is thrown upon the motor-wheels 'to thereby increase the tractive power of the car, and this without increasing the weight of the several parts, and notwithstanding the portion of the weight of the car upon the mo tor-wheels, and as the motor is hung entirely outside of the motor-wheels, which latter of the weight of the heretofore, a great increase of various parts are grouped in such a manner I as to bring an increased weight upon the motor-wheels. Such weight by my invention is so distributed and balanced, as will be hereinafter described, that the motor will receive less severe shocks while running than trucks constructed in accordance with the prevailing type and carrying less weight upon their motor-wheels. The brake-rigging is placed between the wheels, the brake-shoes upon each side of the truck being connected by toggle levers, which when straightened will force the brake-shoes apart against the wheels to apply the brakes The brake riggingis so constructed that the less pressure applied to the brake-shoes acting against the wheels carrying the lightest load may be lessv than the pressure applied to the wheels carrying the greatest load, to thus prevent sliding a portion of the wheels before the maximum brak-- ing pressure has been applied to the remaining wheels.

Having thus stated generally the principle of my invention, I will proceed now to describe the best mode in which I have conconteinplated applying that principle, and will then particularly pointout and distinctly claim the part orimprovement which Iclaim as my invention.

Figure 1 represents in side elevation aportion of one end of a double-truck car supported upon a truck embodying this invention; Fig. 2, a top or plan view, partially broken away, of the truck shown in Fig.1; and Figs. 3, 4, 5, and 6, details to be referred to.

Referring 'to the drawings, the wheels A, mounted on the axles a, journaled-in journalform' and construction. The journal-boxes a are embraced said journal-boxes are preferably interposed pieces of rubber or other suitable yielding material, as shown at a,to take up the shocks. The housings b are connected by longitudinal'beams or bars, said housings being herein shown as slotted at their upper sides to receive the parallel upper frame-bars c,extending continuously from one side around the end of the truck to the opposite side, as represented best in Fig. 2;

jacent ends of the housings b are tied together by parallel lower frame-bars (see Fig. 1;);

and the housings at the front end of the truck are fitted to receive .oneend of the 9 braces 0, extended obliquely upward to the the end of the truckare represented as uni-ted by'bolts-2, firmly holding a block 3, through which is passed the suspension-bolt5,encircld upper frame-bar c, to which they are bolted; Diagonally-placed bars 0 and lower frame-bars between the housings, (see Fig.1,) to stiffen and strengthen the construction. The usual guards G are supported by bars 9, bolted to and carried by the housings 'b, as shown. The upper frame-bars cat by the springs 12, the bolt being embraced I between the springs by an ear or bracketm supported at its opposite end usual manner.

on the armatureend of an electric motor M, on the axle a in The armature m (see Fig. 1) of tlie'motor M is geared in usual manner to the mile a by the gear-wheels m m v and 1m m i d ition of the armature'turning theaxle -.to. move the car. Theupper frame-bares, on

5- either side of the truck hold firmly between them blocks 0, (shown in Fig. 3. and in section, Fig.5) which, together with the upperframehar'sc, support the preferably elliptic springs theqilates c and bolts 0 is, arranged in, pairs upon either side of the frame,the springs of eachpair being separated by ariba", raised on the block a, and the springs are clamped or secured in place by (See Fig. 5.)

The-bolster B, carried by the springs s, has

a central bearing B,in which-rests and turns a corresponding bearing B on the car-body H. (See Figs. 1 and 2.) Y The springs s, which constitute the support for the car-body, are preferably placed somewhat forward of'the transverse center of the truck and nearer the motor or driving axle and wheels,as shown, to thus throw a greater percentage of. the weight sustained by the truck u n the motor or driving wheels to increaset e tractive and driving power of the car.v In practice the springs s will be inclosed in a'housing h, suitablysecured to the frame of the truck, and oflset, as at h',and cut away .fto-receive and serve as a guide for the bolster B- in its vertical movement. When starting the car, thisliousing will transmit the move meut from the truck to the car-bod y, relievingthe springs from all endwise pull or strain.

- It-has heretofore been customary to hang thejmotor within the wheel-base of the truck, in which case the weight of the motor isborne proportionately by the four wheels of the truck, and as the motor is usually applied to The lower inner ad-- connect the upper where themotors are only one pair of wheels of a swivel-truck a.

portion of the weight of the motor failsjio be utilized to increase the-tractive power, for the reason that such portion is sustained by the pairof wheels which are not geared to themotor; suspended or hung from the truck-frame entirely outside the wheel-base and beyond the motor-axle or In the truck hereiushown the motor is I the axle -to which the power is applied, sothat the entire weight of the .mo-"

tor is' carried by the motor-wheels to thus in crease the tractive power. In trucks as heretofore constructed probably not over twothirds of the entire weight of the motor is carried -by the motor-wheels, whereas in the truck herein shownthe entire, weight of the motor is carried by'the motor-wheels, and. as the motor usually weighs not less than three thousand pounds it will be evident that theadditional one thousand pounds thus thrown upon the motor-wheels will greatly increase their tracti ve power. As previously set forth,

v hung within the wheelbaseof the truck the room that it is almost impossible to bring the two pairs otwheels suflicien tlynear each other motors occupy so much to permit the trucktoeasilypass curves of short the motor outside the wheel-base, whereby the increase in weight: is obtained, the weight of the motoriu such position tends to counterbalance the weight ofthe car. supported upon the opposite side 01? the motor-axle, so that" the action when passing an obstruction or unevenness in the rails is much easier and less severe upon the truck than where the motor is arranged within the wheel-base and acting together with the car bod y as so much dead-weight.

The upper frame-bars c support-the inwardly-projecting studs 0", from which are hung the links e, to the lower ends of which upon the same side of the truck being conare jointed the brake-shoes E, the brake-shoes nected by the links a, jointed as represented at their adjacent ends to a bar efifextended transversely across thetruck, as shown. The links e e form a sort of toggle-joint, and as the bar e ened to apply the brakes. The bar (2- near is lifted the links e e'are straight-' its center has jointed tpita link-e, connected i in turn at its upper end to one arm of a bellcrank lever e, pivotally supported on. the channel-bar e carriedby the truck-frame, the other armof the saidbell-crank lever be-. ing jointed to one endot a bar 01'? rode, 0perated in usual manner from the car-body to apply thdbrakes. Asthe greater part of the weight'ofth e car'is carried on the front axle Y of eachtruckand theweight of the fmotors is also sustained thereon, it is evident that the wheels on thoseaxles will permita much more powerful-application'of thebrake-shos without sliding than will the inner wheels of the-trucks, which do not sustain so great a weight. It follows, therefore, that where the to "brake-shoes are applied with a uniform pressureto all the wheels as by the ordinary brakeriggin'g, or even by a plain toggle arrangement,- the wheels which sustain the lesser weiglit'will slide long before thewheels which r 5 mm the heavier weight will have received the maximum braking pressure. This sliding results in flattening the wheels, and to 0bviate this as far as possible I have constructed one of the links 6' of each pair so that the brake-shoe operated thereby shall be applied with only suflicient'pressnre to secure the maximum eflicient braking pressure,

whilethe other brake-shoe may be applied by i the'same means at the same time with much greater efi'ective pressure.

r .Referring to Figs. 1 and 6, the links e, op-

erating the brake-shoes which act upon the inner pair of wheels which support the lesser weight, are formed of two m'embers20 21, the

3 adjacent ends of which slide within the sleeves 25, springs 26 interposed between them, as shown, tending to force said members apart. TheFsleeves 25.have two diametrically-oppo-. site pins or studs 27, which move in the curved slots 28 in the brackets or frames 30, secured to or forming apart of the inner lower framebars 0 When the toggle-links e are straightcried, the force exerted acts to force both f brake-shoesagainst their respective wheels 9 with the same pressure until the same overppmes the strength of the spring-26, when the {member 20 will be forced into the sleeve '25 and will compress the said spring until the shoulder 20 comes into contact with the end 511f the sleeve, when the pressure previously resisted by the spring 26 will be taken by the pins or lugs 27 in the slots 28, and the tog- I gle is further straightened the entire force.

will be exerted upon the brakeshoes acting against the wheels carrying the greater weight. It will thus be seen when the spring 26 'has been adjusted to limit the brakingpressure upon its wheels that the moment the actuating force exceeds that limit the entireforce or end-thrust afterward exerted will be received by the pins 27 and the bracket or support 30 and thrown upon the opposite brake-shoes.

I am aware that heretofore the motor has been placed outside of the Wheel-base, but, so 'far as I know, in every such instance a rigid four-wheel truck is used and the car-body also is supported outside the wheelbase, so that no advantage results in the shape of counterbalancing or equalizing. the two weights to lessen the severity of shocks received. In my invention I use a swiveled four-wheel truck and support the motor outside the wheel-baseand support the car-body within the whcel basaand thereby the'weight -upon the motor-wheels is increased and'theirtractive power augmentedand at thesa'me time the" weights equalize one another" to lessen theshocks.

I claim' c H 1. Ina motor-car, the combination of the car-body, a four-wheel car-truck, a swivel connection for the two arranged nearer the pair of motor-wheels and within the wheelbase, and a motor hung between the truck frame and motor-wheels axle outside the wheel-base, substantially as described, I

2. in a motor-car, the embed y, bolster, and cent-erbearing plate thereon, and a fou r-wheel truck,its bolster and center-bearing plate, and interposed springs, the said bo1sters,centerbearing plates, and springs being arranged out of center of the truck and nearer the motor-wheels and within the-wheelbase, combined-with a motor hung between the truck-frame and motor-wheels axle and outside the wheel-base, substantially as and for the purpose described.

In a motor-car, a swivel four-wheel cartruck having the car-body supported entirely within the Wheel-base, and the motor hung outside the wheel-base and between the frame and motor-wheels axle, whereby the motorwheels axle receives the weight, combined with a brake mechanism arranged between the pairs of wheels and adapted to impart greater resistance to the motor-Wheels than to the others, in accordance with the greater inertia of the said wheels, substantially as described.

t. The combination, with the axles, wheels thereon, and journal-boxes therefor, of housings b for said journal-boxes, said housings being connected by parallel upper frame-bars c, and lower frame-bars c, the upper framebars extending across the end of the truck from side to side to form a support for a motor outside the wheel-base, substauthilly as described.

A truck-frame consisting of housings for the journabboxes having slots for the pal-ah lel upper frame-bars c and titted to receive the lower frame-bars c, and braces 0 substantiall y as described.

G. in a motor'car, a swivel four-wheel car-- truck having the car-body supported entirely within the wheel-base, and the motor hung outside the Wheel-base and between the frame and motor-wheels axle, whereby the motorwheels axle receives the weight, combined with a brake mechanism arranged between the wheels and having its shoes supported by toggles, one member of said toggles being made with a yielding joint and limited as to movement and the other member having its movement unlimited save by the wheels and acting upon the motor-wheels of the truck proportionately with the superior inertia of such wheels, substantially as described.

IIO

7. The axles, wheels thereon, a truck-frame carried thereby, combined with brake-shoes suspended between said wheels, togglelinks connecting said brake shoes, means to straighten the same, and a support to receive and take from one of. the brake-shoes a portion of the end-thrust exerted by one of the links to force the said shoe against its wheel, substantially as described.

8. The axles, wheels thereon, a truck-frame carried thereby, combined with brake-shoes suspended between'said wheels, toggle-links connecting said brake shoes, means to straighten the same, one of the links having a spring introduced between it and the brakeshoe, and a support to receive the end-thrust of said link when said spring has been compressed, substantially as described. 7

9. The axles, wheels thereon, and a truckframe carried thereby, combined with brakeshoes suspended between said wheels, and the links e a, connecting said brake-shoes, and

means to straighten the same, one of said links consisting of two members 20 21, the sleeve 25, and spring 36, said sleeve having pins 27, adapted to move in the slot 28 in a'support 30, all to operate substantially as. 1described.

10. The axlcs;wheelsthereon, a truck-frame carried thereby, combined with truckshoes suspended to all against the said wheels, and

means whereby a limited pressure may be applied to a portion of said brake-shoes and a greater pressure to the remaining brake-shoes at the same time, substantially as described.

11. The combination, with the wheels and a truck-frame supported thereby, of springs supported by said truck-frame, a bolster connecting said springs, and a housing for said springs formed to serve as a guide for the bolster in its vertical movement, substantially as described.

12. In a swivel car-truck, the axles, wheels thereon, a, truck-frame carried thereby, and a support for the car-body located entirely within the wheel-base, said support being out of the actual centerot the truck and near to one pair otwheels, combined with a motor, one

end of which is supported on one of the a des, its other end being supported by the truckframe outside the wheel-base, and a brakerigging placed between and adapted to act against the inner tread stantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence'ot two subscribing witnesses. Y

JOHN H. BICKFORD.

of the wheels, sub- Witnesses:

J AS. H. CHURCHILL, EDWARD F. ALLEN.

shoes It is hereby certified that in Letters Patent N 0. 466,595, granted January 5, 1892, upon the application of John H. Bickford, of Salem, Massachusetts, for an improvement in Car-Trucks, errors appear in the printed specification requiring correction, as follows: In line 29, page 4, the eor npound word truck-shoes should readbrakeand in line 30, same page, the word all should read bear,- and that the said Letters Patent should be read with these corrections therein that the same may eonf'orm to the record of the case in the Patent Ofiice.

Signed, countereigned, and sealed this 5th day of March, A. D., 1901.

" F. L. CAMPBELL Assistant Secremry of the Interior.

[SEAL] Countersigned C. H. DUELL,

Commissioner of Patents. 

